So here’s a really interesting-looking event taking place tomorrow (Saturday the 25th) over in Madras: a Beverages Farm Tour with High Desert EATs (which stands for “Educational Agriculture Tours”). It starts early—8:30am, at Maragas Winery—and among other things will cover beer, wine, and whiskey. How can you go wrong?

Here are the details:

Join us in the third farm tour event in the Jefferson County Farm Tour series, High Desert Educational Agricultural Tours (EATs). Have you ever wondered how our local libations are produced?

Taste milk fresh from Poland’s Organic Diary cows, tour Jefferson County’s only malting facility at Mecca Grade Estate Malt, check out how spirits are made at New Basin Distilling, and learn what makes the high desert soil great for growing grapes at Maragas Winery!

Tour Runs from 8:30am – 1:30pm
Lunch and wine tasting is included in ticket price: $35.00
This tour is recommended for ages 21 and up!

Tour Starts/Finishes at Maragas Winery.
Free Shuttle departs Maragas Winery at 8:30.

Tour Stop #1: Poland’s Organic Dairy Farm, 9:00 – 10:00
3751 NW Elm Lane, Madras

Tour Stop #2: Mecca Grade Estate Malt, 10:15 – 11:15
2048 NW Columbia Drive, Madras

Tour Stop #3: New Basin Distilling, 11:30 – 12:15
1789 NW Mill St., Madras

Tour Stop #4: Maragas Winery, 12:30 – 1:30
15523 SW Hwy 97, Culver, OR

Shuttle with 4-H Club guide service available for the first 24 registrants.
Water is available on the tours courtesy of Earth20.
We love pets but please leave yours at home for the tours.

Questions? Contact Maura at 541-325-1064.

One of the things I really like about this is both Maragas (the region’s first winery growing grapes here in Central Oregon) and Mecca Grade Estate (the region’s only—as far as I know—commercial maltster, growing and malting barley grain for beer brewing) — these are great opportunities to visit and learn about our own “growing” industries in the beer and wine industry. And I know Mecca Grade will have a number of special estate-grown and brewed beers on tap for this Tour.

The cost is $35 and you can get tickets here—hurry though, as the end of today (Friday) is the deadline for tomorrow’s tour.

If this is something that interests you, do it!